“Episode 8”
“The botanical garden has been around for quite some time, so the elementalists and magicians joined forces,” he said smoothly. “In fact, this place has been around longer than the botanical garden close to the palace.” Watching him speak so smoothly, I hesitated for a moment. Whether he noticed my reaction or not, he extended his hand to me with a relaxed smile. “Would you accept my invitation for tea time?” I held my breath for a moment. Yes, this setting would be the best for him to talk about his purpose. I nodded eagerly and stepped onto the arched stone bridge over the narrow stream.
—
Splish, the sound of pouring tea sounded splendid. Prince Joshua instructed his attendants and maid to wait on the other side of the bridge. There was some distance between the bridge and this space, so it seemed unlikely that conversations here would be heard on the other side. Clack, he handed me the first poured cup of tea gracefully. As a prince, he brewed the tea very traditionally. Even though there wasn’t a sandglass or anything to time it, he managed to brew the tea perfectly. Every time his slender fingers moved gracefully, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of inexplicable jealousy. Lucas hardly had such grace, but you had it. “Reminds me of the past.” My favorite debuted with just his face, lacking in singing, dancing, and acting skills. He made some effort, but his innate dance lines weren’t pretty, so he looked stiff like a dry branch, and his singing, despite clearly singing live as if he had chewed on a CD, was fundamentally lacking. Unfortunately, as the main vocalist of the same group, he had a slightly less popular appearance, but he had everything else. Looking at Joshua now, I felt like I was seeing that main vocalist. “…Let’s not think like this. After all, he was my former favorite who I abandoned when I died.” It was pointless to dwell on memories like this, only hurting my feelings. When I drank the tea and ate half of the sandwich, Prince Joshua leisurely opened his mouth. “Does it suit your taste?” “Yes, it’s perfect.” I didn’t even realize my voice had gotten louder. No, it’s just that there have been almost no teas that fit my taste so far! If I didn’t make a fuss about various annoying processes, I couldn’t have achieved such a exquisite sense of taste. “…Even though I went through all the trouble to brew it.” He did it effortlessly with such a natural movement. No matter how much ‘perfection’ was his moniker, wasn’t this too much? Suppressing the dirty jealousy rising inside me, I tried to speak like a noble lady. “I didn’t know you could brew tea yourself. Your Highness doesn’t need to go through such trouble.” The tea served by the palace servants wasn’t as good as this. Then surely, someone like His Highness or even the Emperor’s attendants must have exceptional skills, right? My personal maids somehow tended to make teas that were more bitter or sour to suit Lucas’s taste. Even though I tried several times to tell them, they couldn’t match it, so I just repeated the days of thinking of it as an Americano for labor. “It’s just a small hobby of mine.” He replied with a hint of envy in my words. “Someone said to me before, ‘It’s good to drink tea, but…'” His words paused for a moment. After his violet eyes looked at me for a while, he opened his mouth as if recalling a fond memory. “We have a lot to take care of ourselves, so it’s too troublesome. It’s even more painful to feel the subtle difference in taste.” “…I see.” He thinks similarly to me. I don’t know who he is or where he lives, but I really want to introduce myself to someone who seems to match my heart so much. It’s like finding a rare fan who made my favorite his favorite among the group’s fans. “Thinking of that person, I suddenly realized that my skill is better than an average servant’s.” How could I know what he’s thinking? Even though he’s younger than me… His actions were so polite and perfect that any slight hint of arrogance seemed to be covered up. But now, for some reason, he seemed to look too much like my age, and it felt like I shouldn’t be looking at him. “Of course, he’s probably thinking of a lover right now.”
“It’s a wonderful moment,” I felt, with a fleeting sense of camaraderie towards someone who seemed to share similar thoughts about tea as me. With a playful sense of affinity, I blurted out a cheeky question to him. “Then shouldn’t you not be spending time like this with me, Your Highness?” I couldn’t do such a hypocritical thing to someone who understood the subtleties like me. His hand, tapping the teacup, abruptly stopped at my words. His violet eyes briefly flickered with confusion. Gazing at me intently, he tilted his head slightly with a faint smile and rested his chin on his hand. “It seems like there’s a misunderstanding, Miss Blante.” “A misunderstanding?” “I am exactly as known.” I felt slightly embarrassed. Did he know that I had researched a lot about him? “Exactly as known? I’m sorry, but I just arrived at the capital and I’m not familiar with the rumors.” “Ah, I see.” Joshua’s eyes seemed cheerful. What was this feeling of being on his palm? But since I had decided to play dumb until the end, I decided to continue pretending not to know. “Then you’ll find out soon.” Joshua said as he placed tarts on my empty plate. Tarts with a fluffy texture were one of my favorite desserts. “Unfortunately, I haven’t had any experience with lovers yet. They haven’t given me their hearts.” I sighed quietly and lowered my eyes. Everyone seemed to be doing well in relationships behind the scenes…? It felt like shouting ‘liar!’ if our eyes met. How could he escort women so skillfully without any experience? It wasn’t just escorting Anita Hwang-guibi, the Empress’s concubine. His mother, Anita Hwang-guibi, had always said that her hands belonged to the Emperor! I didn’t believe his words at all and just replied, “I see.” Whether he read my expression or not, he seemed to want to correct himself, but he quickly changed the subject. Yes, that’s right. Scandals always become more trivial the longer they’re talked about. When the prepared pastries were halfway gone, I relaxed my guard against him, as much as my growling stomach did. I always had a heavy heart, but for some reason, talking to him made my familiar personality come out naturally. ‘I really shouldn’t be like this.’ Instead of acting like Alicia Blante, the noblewoman who did various things for Lucas, I acted more like myself, enjoying the good things. I thought I needed to somehow put my softened heart back in place and firmly solidify it. At that moment, Joshua Mellric extended his hand towards me with a thoughtful expression. “May I ask you a question?” A ripple spread. Instinctive tension rose from the tips of my toes. “What kind of person is Lucas, Miss Blante?” He had been waiting for this moment throughout today’s conversation.
